The Importance Of The Anointing Of God

THE IMPORTANCE OF THE ANOINTING OF GOD!

TEXT: Isaiah 61:1-3

THE SPIRIT OF THE LORD GOD IS UPON ME; BECAUSE THE LORD HAS ANOINTED ME TO PREACH GOOD TIDINGS TO THE POOR; HE HAS SENT ME TO HEAL THE BROKENHEARTED, TO PROCLAIM LIBERTY TO THE CAPTIVES, AND THE OPENING OF THE PRISON TO THOSE WHO ARE BOUND: TO PROCLAIM THE ACCEPTABLE YEAR OF THE LORD, AND THE DAY OF VENGEANCE OF OUR GOD; TO COMFORT ALL WHO MOURN. TO CONSOLE THOSE WHO MOURN IN ZION, TO GIVE THEM BEAUTY FOR ASHES, THE OIL OF JOY FOR MOURNING, THE GARMENT OF PRAISE FOR THE SPIRIT OF HEAVINESS; THAT THEY MAY BE CALLED

TREES OF RIGHEOUSNESS, THE PLANTING OF THE LORD,

THAT HE MAY BE GLORIFIED.

In Luke 4:16-21 Jesus read in the synagogue in Nazareth read the first portion of this scripture. In the Jewish scrolls there are no chapters and verses. These occurred between the 1300’s and 1600’s by Catholic Monks.

While verses 1-3 refer ultimately to the Messiah which is Christ Jesus; this text also refers to the work of the church; specifically within the office of pastors.

Within the UCCP we do not normally use titles. However, out of respect people will refer to church workers by the titles of the offices which were held by the individual(s). But the pastoral office is just one of many offices that are held by Christians. It is not any more important of an office than any other office. Because everything we can do for the Lord can be divided into two parts; those who plant and those who water. And neither one is of any particular importance, only He who gives the increase.

Anoint means to consecrate or to set apart for a particular purpose. The question that we must ask today: “The Anointing of God, Do You Have It?

We will get back to this in a moment. After Jesus read this scripture from the scroll, he handed the scroll back to the attendant and sat back down. The leaders were looking at him and wondering what he might say. Jesus said, “TODAY THIS SCRIPTURE IS FULFILLED IN YOUR HEARING.”

This text was in reference to Jesus Christ by His own words in Luke 4:16-21. But when Christ died on the cross, this anointing was not nailed to the cross but was given to the church.

There are those who preach good tidings to the poor; we have many church workers in this congregation, and we have those who preach different messages, and they are to the poor.

Every Christian has been given unique talents. Some are anointed to preach the gospel; some are set aside to heal the brokenhearted; others are set aside to proclaim liberty to those who are bound; others proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord and the vengeance of our God; and yet others are set aside to comfort those who mourn and God is the one who turns our ashes into beauty.

Southern Airways Flight 932 was a chartered Southern Airways Douglas DC-9 domesticUnited States commercial jet flight from Stallings Field (ISO) in Kinston, North Carolina, toHuntington Tri-State Airport/Milton J. Ferguson Field (HTS) in Ceredo, West Virginia. At 7:36 pm on November 14, 1970, the aircraft crashed into a hill just short of the Tri-State Airport, killing all 75 people on board.[1] The plane was carrying 37 members of the Marshall University Thundering Herd football team, eight members of the coaching staff, 25 boosters, and 5 flight crew members. The team was returning home after a 17–14 loss to the East Carolina Pirates at Ficklen Stadium in Greenville, North Carolina.[2] At the time, Marshall's athletic teams rarely traveled by plane, since most away games were within easy driving distance of the campus. The team originally planned to cancel the flight, but changed plans and chartered the Southern Airways DC-9.[3] The accident is widely considered to be the deadliest sports related tragedy in U.S. history.[4]

On November 15, 1970, a memorial service was held at the Veterans Memorial Fieldhouse with moments of silence, remembrances and prayers.[2] The following Saturday another Memorial Service was held at Fairfield Stadium. Across the nation many expressed their condolences. Classes at Marshall, along with numerous events and shows by the Marshall Artists Series (and the football team's game against the Ohio Bobcats) were canceled and government offices were closed. A mass funeral was held at the Field House and many were buried at the Spring Hill Cemetery, some together because of bodies which could never be identified.

The effects of the crash on Huntington went far beyond the Marshall campus. Because it was the Herd's only charter flight of the season, many boosters and prominent citizens were on the plane, including a city councilman, a state legislator and four physicians. Seventy children lost at least one parent in the crash, with 18 of them left orphaned.[7]